National 20-year study on aging begins at McMaster

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Hamilton Spectator

Mel Hawkrigg is counting on a phone call in 18 months to make sure he’s still alive.

The 82-year-old Waterdown resident, a prominent businessman and community volunteer who chairs the Hamilton Port Authority, has jokingly pledged to live the next 20 years to ensure he can fulfil his part in groundbreaking research.

The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA), where Hawkrigg is one of 50,000 test subjects, is a national in-depth look at what it means to grow old.

The 20-year study found a home base at McMaster Innovation Park with the launch of the high-tech CLSA data collection site and biorepository centre on Friday. It serves as one of 11 hubs across Canada that will see subjects between the ages of 45 and 85 participate in clinical testing. Approximately 12,000 people have signed on so far.

“It’s a very strict study and has to be based on the random population,” explained Dr. Yves Joanette, who is scientific director for the Institute of Aging and executive director at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. “People will be invited to participate. They cannot volunteer.”

Participants are selected and contacted randomly by the Ministry of Health. There are no criteria. Researchers want to establish a selection of natural cases that reflect the health of Canadians today.

Joanette said the age group targets those on the cusp of becoming a senior, those in the heart of their golden years, and those who are likely to die during the course of the study.

The $30-million federal investment that spurred more than 200 direct jobs will provide key information on the aging process and how we can cope. Participants will undergo a series of cognitive and medical testing.

“Good health has many faces,” said Alice Wong, minister of state for seniors, who attended the launch. “This is the largest study of its kind in Canada. It will teach us how to live longer and better.”

Wong said the research will help to develop future health policies based on concrete evidence collected over the next two decades.

The launch of the study happens to coincide with National Seniors Day, Oct. 1.